


Second Contact

by Gezzek



Category: The Orville (TV)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-23
Updated: 2020-05-04
Packaged: 2021-02-27 05:53:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,908
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22372114
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gezzek/pseuds/Gezzek
Summary: Two and a half decades after first contact, Regor 2 sends a distress signal to the Planetary Union requesting the return of the original crew members who arrived on that fateful day.
Comments: 8
Kudos: 23





	1. A Voice from the Void

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A decision decades old rears its ugly head from a corner of space long thought forgotten.

_“That’s actually a really good question. We just lied to an entire planet, and I don’t know what the ethics of that mean, but that lie meant freedom for an entire portion of the population. So, the short answer is, I don’t know.” - Admiral Ed Mercer_

_“By the time their technology advances to the point where they know the jig is up, they may not even care anymore.” - Captain Kelly Grayson_

_“So you all just think the universe is chaos, no order, no significance to anything. I wouldn’t want to be part of a community that believes that.” - The Prefect_

Having just recently attended an unnecessarily stressful peace conference between the Union and Krill, Admiral Mercer was not exactly in the best of moods upon receiving a summons to Planetary Union Central in New York. In fact, it had been nearly a year since his previous visit to officially anoint Bortus as Captain of his own ship, the USS Phoenix. Stepping out of the shuttle craft, the familiar smell of fresh Earth air was a welcome reprieve from the constant recycled air of numerous space faring vessels Ed had spent the previous several months bouncing between. After a deep breath and a quick glance around the landing platform, his gaze turned toward the entrance to Central, a slow glance up toward the upper floors, his destination for today’s summons.

As Ed walked across the massive platform, he still found a sense of fascination with all of the species, humanoid or otherwise, that now held presence on Earth after all these years of deep space exploration the Union so passionately pursued. His salt and peppered hair, a mostly grayed goatee, and baby crows feet were physical manifestations of his experience. Part way to the main entry, a familiar voice shouted from his right, he couldn’t help but jump in reaction.

“ED?! ED IS THAT YOU?! WHAT THE HELL YOU DOIN’ HERE?!” The Admiral quickly turned his gaze to meet the source of the voice, his familiar, warm smile forming as he realized it was Gordon,”GET OVER HERE BIG GUY!”

“Gordon! Great to see you buddy, how are ya’?” Both men closed the gap in a couple steps, embracing each other in a strong hug, hands clapping on each other’s backs.

“Good, good. What brings you to this side of the galaxy?” Pulling away from each other, Ed dropped his hands to his sides, Gordon crossed his arms one over the other casually.

“Honestly, I have no idea what’s happening right now. I just got back from Krill space after renewing the peace accords. I’d planned on going and maybe getting lost on a beach somewhere and getting wasted, but yeah not so much.” He trailed off at the end, indicating obvious disappointment in his current situation, “But you know, its probably nothing.”

Gordon’s brow furrowed slightly, his head shook a bit, ”I feel like if it was something simple they would have just called you right? Must be something serious to fly you all the way out here?”

“No idea. Speaking of being here, what’s your deal?” Ed’s right hand reached up to pat against Gordon’s shoulder, his smile returning.

“They got me working at the Academy now. I’m basically the main guy for flight school. I don’t know who in their right mind thought that would be a good idea, but I guess it keeps me out of trouble.” It was now noticeable that Gordon was adorned with Commander rank,”They threw these on me and that was pretty much that.”

Ed couldn’t help but keep smiling,”Well not like you didn’t earn it, you were only the best damn pilot in the galaxy for a couple decades.” With another soft clap against Gordon’s shoulder, Ed nodded toward the tower,”I gotta get up there, but when I figure out what this is all about are you up for getting into some trouble?”

“Hell yeah man, let me know when and where. Hope you can keep up in your old age, Admiral.” Gordon snickered and punched Ed playfully on the chest, who promptly feigned pain before straightening up and taking a couple steps opposite Gordon,”Be safe, boss.”

“See you soon.” With that, both picked up walking in their original directions. Ed’s arrival into the lobby of Union Central was uneventful, there were so many Admirals now that he was just another face in the crowd when here inside the hive. Arriving at the lifts, a pressed against the touch panel to the side requesting access to the top floor prompts an AI requesting identity verification, causing Ed to push his palm against the panel. 

A quick confirmation beep, and the doors slid open without further delay. Stepping inside, he turned back toward the entry, hands cupped together in front of himself. Doors now closed, the lift took off with minimal movement toward the top of the massive skyscraper. “Still no music in these damn things…” He muttered to himself with a sigh, bending his knees slightly and making random noises with his mouth. Moments later the lift doors slid open, revealing the landing area to a place he had seen only a handful of other times. A few steps out into the carpeted floor, he glanced toward either of the massive bay windows facing toward the rest of New York’s iconic skyline. 

A young Xelayan woman sat at what he would assume to be the reception desk, staring at a floating screen with text scrolling across. As the Admiral approached she looked up, smiling brightly, “Good morning Admiral, how may I help you?” Her hands folding one over the other atop the desk.

“Good morning Lieutenant. I’m here to see Admiral Halsey, he summoned me two days ago.”

“Certainly, may I have your name please?” She tapped against a few places on the floating screen.

“Ed Mercer.” For some reason Ed still had this thing about attempting to avoid calling himself an Admiral, it made him feel older every time he said it. “Sorry, Admiral...Ed Mercer.”

Nodding slightly, she received a response almost instantly, ”Excellent, the Admiral is ready for you.” Standing, she’d reach out with her right arm to gesture toward Halsey’s office, then place both hands behind her back.

Ed nodded curtly, “Thank you, Lieutenant.” Stepping toward the office, he couldn’t help but continue to glance back and forth between the windows. He had only been here a handful of other times, once to officially turn over control of the Orville, a memorial service, and the panel for his final promotion.

Entering Halsey’s office, Ed smiled ear to ear, as did the elder leader, ”Admiral, good to see ya.” He intially reached out a hand, only for Halsey to push past it to pull Ed into a quick hug.

“Talking to me like you still work under me. How are you?” They spoke over each other’s shoulders for a moment, “Easy trip?”

When pulled into the hug Ed did return the embrace, clapping his hand against Halsey’s back, “Wasn’t too bad, just a couple hops. Although for some reason I still needed to change planes in Atlanta.”

Halsey couldn’t help but chuckle at the joke, Ed was one of the few people who could make the man laugh, “Sounds normal to me.” Pulling away, he turned to walk back around his desk, waving a hand out to direct Ed to take a seat in front of him. Both sat simultaneously, smoothing out their uniforms with a slight yank to the bottom edge of the garment. ”I’m sure you’re wondering why I made you fly all the way out here instead of just sending coms. I thought it would be easier in person to let you know something has happened on Regor 2.”

“Regor 2? Why does that sound familiar?” Ed looked away from Halsey, he truly was attempting to remember the name. “Regor 2. Regor 2. Was that the planet with all of the insanely hot alien women that insisted on walking around nude?” His look returned to Halsey, a slight smirk to follow the blatant sarcasm.

“You would only hope. No, Regor 2 was the planet that held an ardent belief in astrology and had a caste system held in place by the imprisonment of a large number of the inhabitants.”

“Ah, yes, the planet that took Bortus and Kelly hostage and we had to bullshit our way out of them not being publicly executed. What about it?”

Halsey leaned over his desk, his fingers intertwining and hands resting on the desk, “Ed we received a second distress signal from them.”

“Wasn’t that twenty something years ago?” Ed leaned against the arm of his chair, his eyes narrowing in confusion. “All this time and suddenly they’re reaching out again?”

“Yes, they have indicated that they wish to only see you, Captain Grayson, Captain Bortus, Commander Keyali, and Union Chief of Medicine Finn. We did not respond to the distress signal because they demanded only you and those specific members of your crew who also arrived during first contact.” Halsey’s hands unfolded, tapping against the panel on his desk until video footage started on a display on a nearby wall. “They also sent us some rather disturbing footage.”

Both turned to face the wall, a young Regorian woman is centered on screen, scars run centered down both sides of the unique markings near her cheeks and temples, her eyes appear nearly lifeless, ”Leaders of the Planetary Union, my name is Kelly, and I am the High Commander of the Giliac Resistance. The Wasandan Allied Forces have been defeated and are requesting the negotiation of terms be completed by those who arrived here twenty five years ago. It would be most fulfilling to meet the human woman who my mother so aptly chose to name me after, as well as the Moclan who attempted in vain to launch our insurrection, but if only Captain Ed Mercer is available to visit the planet, so be it. I, we, look forward to your response.”

Ed turned to look toward Halsey, his mouth half hung open in disbelief, “When did you get this?”

“Four days ago. I sent out your recall almost the same day.”

Standing slowly from his chair, Ed stepped toward the bay window near Halsey’s desk, his arms fell loosely at his sides. After a moment of silent contemplation, he spoke quietly, “You know I always worried about something like this. One of these things would end up coming back to bite me in the ass.”

“Ed, listen to me,” Halsey stood, side stepping around his desk to stand at Ed’s side facing toward him, “You had to make tough decisions out there. You weren’t wrong. Theres no way we could have known there would be a violent societal collapse, and even if we’d known, Kelly and Bortus would be dead today.”

With a heavy sigh, his arms crossing, Ed lowered his head, shaking it slightly, “I can’t even count how many times I had to figure out how to save the few and many at the same time.” Turning toward Halsey, he continues, “I’ll go out there, alone. Don’t bring Kelly and Bortus into this. Don’t bring anyone else into this. I’ll figure this out on my own.”

“I admire your courage Ed, but I don’t feel great sending you out to the wolves on your own like this.”

“If I promise you that I’ll let the ship that drops me off park just outside the planet in case I need something, will that make you feel better?”

Halsey initially did not respond, sighing with a slight head shake, “Stubborn as ever. It doesn’t make me feel better, but as a fellow Admiral I feel inclined to follow your wishes.” He turned back around to step past the desk again, sitting before tapping away at the desk panel, “If you feel even the slightest bit as if you are in danger, I want you to get back on your shuttle and get the hell out of there.”

Arms dropping, Ed turned toward the desk, “I will. See you again, Admiral.”


	2. Ghosts of the Past

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A young woman interrogates a descendant of the First Prefect prior to leading a raid on the capital, commemorating the anniversary of the return of the "Giliac star".

"You know, things didn't need to be this way all of those years ago." The slender young Regorian woman paced around a terrified young man in the center of the room, his lips struggled to adjust the gag placed between his teeth, his wrists shifted uncomfortably behind the chair. "Your grandfather insisted that people born under my star were savage, violent, animistic beasts who were forced to be kept in a cage. So, instead of being born in the finest hospitals on the planet, I was born in a barracks and then ripped away from my mother's crying arms." After she completed a lap around his chair, she sat down across from him, her legs crossing one over the other, hands placed in her lap. "I do know that you Wasandans all believe yourselves to be leaders and the best of our planet, bound for glory and riches beyond what any Giliac could ever imagine. Thats why this anniversary celebration will not be a joyous, fun filled event of happiness and smiles, but one of vengeance and sorrow."

The two stared at each other in silence for what felt like forever to the man before she stood sharply, her chair screeching backward behind her in protest, she stepped toward him quickly, spinning his chair around to ensure he had maximum visibility of a massive screen giving a bird's eye view of the capital city. She leaned into him, speaking quietly into his ear,"You will watch, and you will feel the suffering of every Giliac your grandfather defiled before we finally killed him years after he attempted to send us back to the camps." She pointed at the screen at one of the larger buildings, smirking coyly, "Isn't that where your family is? Its that one right? I'll be sure we leave it in nothing but a pile of dust. Then we will move onto the next one, and the next one after that, until this horrible place is flat as the vast desert you sent us to die in."

He attempted to speak through the gag once more, his eyes welled up at the thought of his family perishing in such a cruel and horrific manner. She smiled again, with a shake of her head and a waived hand, "Save your tears. You haven't heard the worst of it yet." She took a few steps in front of him, her arms crossed one over the other as she turned to face him just a few feet away. "We will kill your friends, and their families and friends, and we will do this until the only ones who even remember that your kind so much as existed are us. Regor 2 will no longer know the history of the Wasandans, and there will only be stories told of the might of the Giliac star. You will be nothing more than a terrible memory." With that her arms unfolded, and she stepped past him with a gentle tap on the shoulder as she walked by, "You will be the last Wasandan. Isn't that something?" He could not turn his head enough to watch her walk out, but heard the door slide open and then closed, indicating her departure.

To his horror, his eyes met the video screen just in time to watch the building he called home for years explode in a massive bright light, rubble was sent in many directions. Movement could be seen near the ground floor, even with the view itself being from a satellite, it was people running in a hope to escape the fires and explosion that had just occurred inside. Then he saw the familiar flashes of tracer fire from the rifles of a circle of soldiers that had surrounded the building, and they were approaching the building in a formation, creating a massive perimeter ring to isolate the building itself and gun down any person who attempted to escape. He knew for sure the building only housed fellow Wasandans, and a sad part of him was certain the violent halo had to be composed of Giliac rebels. He was to bear witness to the extermination of the same people of his birth star, all because of his grandfather's aggressiveness toward the Planetary Union so many years ago.

Outside the room, a Giliac trooper wearing heavy armor waited for the woman to emerge, his closed fist lifting to his chest and pressing against his heart as a form of salute the moment she approached, "Your orders, ma'am?"

"Continue with the cleansing. All Wasandan buildings should be leveled and survivors exterminated." She spoke while walking past the soldier, her movement brisk and deliberate.

"It will be done, in the name of Kelly." The man responded, pounding his chest with the closed fist before he scurried off.

"In the name of Kelly."


	3. Starbound

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Admiral Mercer hitches a ride to Regor 2 on the USS Starbound and receives a status update on some of his crew members.

Admiral Mercer stared in silent contemplation out the massive bay window of his quarters, his mind raced almost as quickly as the random specks of space dust and debris that intensely shot by at this level of warp factor. During his time as Captain of the Orville, usually prior to the most challenging moments, he often took the time to stare into the emptiness of space, running through as many scenarios as before he came to a decision. He was instrumental in brokering a peace amongst the Moclans, fought valiantly in the Battle of Earth on behalf of the Union against the Kaylon invader, and managed to survive a painful and heartbreaking divorce from the love of his life.

But this was different. To save Kelly and Bortus, Ed had to disobey direct orders from Union Central and trick an entire planet into thinking a star, long consumed by a distant black hole, had returned suddenly without warning. The trick worked, and his First and Second Officer were returned to the ship with no lasting physical damage. He initially shrugged off any implication that their behavior could potentially alter the course of history on Regor 2, and Kelly mentioned a hope that by the time the planet understood what had taken place it would be irrelevant and they could move on with minimal disruption. He neglected to understand the intense belief in astrology which placed his crew in such immediate danger in the first place.

Seeing the video of the young woman who was a newborn all of those years ago requesting his presence on the planet sent a shock up Ed’s spine he had not felt in many years. It was directly contrary to the relief he felt seeing Kelly and Bortus walk off that shuttle all those years ago after months of negotiations and tireless debates with both Union command and the Regorians. How could a society with such a technological advantage be so primitive with their cultural behavior? This species was ready to explore the stars, yet they were arguing about the merits of an individual based on the time of year and alignment of the stars on the day of their birth. Now, all of this time later, he had the suspicion that something horrific happened, and he was being recalled by this young woman to atone for his sins.

“Hey, how are you feeling?” A familiar voice spoke to him from behind, he hadn’t even heard the door to his quarters slide open.

“Same as before, I’m terrified of what I’m going to see when I get down there.” He continued to stare out the window, his arms still crossed tightly as one hand reached up to stroke at his beard.

Quiet steps were taken toward him, and arms wrapped around his midsection, a head rest gently on his shoulder, long, bright blonde hair fell aimlessly down his arm and chest,”Ed you did what you had to do. You saved me, you saved Bortus, and you did it without firing a single shot.”

He scoffed, his head rested slightly against hers,”I wish I had your optimism. Something tells me I’m not going to be welcomed as a savior.” His crossed arms dropped now and rested on top of her own,”Did you get in contact with Bortus yet?”

“Yes, he’s in the middle of some sort of dispute between Moclus and the Krill over territorial rights to a carbon mine.” Kelly squeezed him tightly for a moment before pulling away to take a seat in one of the chairs at his in quarters conference table, her legs crossing one over the other, hands cupped and resting on lap.

“Ah, yes, arguing with Avis about a contract dispute. Classic.” He smirked coyly, turning then taking a few steps to the synthesizer, “Two Whiskey rocks.” Within a second the slot is filled with two glasses half full of brown liquid. Turning back toward the table, he takes a seat next to her, sliding one of the glasses across the table. “Anything from Finn or LaMarr? How about Talla?” A gentle clink of the glasses, before he lifted his for a heavy first drink.

Kelly took a sip from the glass, wincing slightly after a heavy swallow, her head shaking slightly, “Doc is still considered retired, John was given another science vessel as Captain after the first one was destroyed during an expedition headed by the Retespians, and Talla went back to Xelaya for recovery. Remember when we lost Allara? Similar deal. I guess they have to go back every few years or so.” Another sip taken, a similar grimace the second time.

“Then I guess it’ll just be me going down there.”

“Ed I don’t think you should go by yourself. What if this is some sort of trap to lure you in and keep you locked up down there? What’re you gonna do when they start asking you questions about the mission and everything that’s happened over the last twenty five plus years?”

He took another long drink, placing the empty glass on the table, sliding it away from himself, letting out a deep breath,”I’ll tell them the truth Kel, I did what I had to do to get you and Bortus the hell out of there. They may not have liked it, but there’s no taking it back now right?”

“I want to send a security team with you.”

“For what? So we can try and fight our way back to the drop ship and hope we can get outside of their air defenses before blasting us out of the sky?”

“That’s exactly what.”

“When we arrive tomorrow, we’ll reach out and see if they’re in a talking mood. I mean it still took them years to get in touch with us again. We completely abandoned the planet and basically isolated it once we left.” Ed’s hand reached out to rest it upon her own, his eyes looking up at hers,”Nothin’ to worry about.”

They were interrupted by a loud call from the coms system,”Bridge to Captain Mercer.”

They both spoke up,”Captain Mercer here.” Both couldn’t help but smile brightly, laughing for a moment until Kelly spoke again,”Go for Captain Mercer.”

“Captain Mercer, we are approaching the Regorian system. Estimated time to arrival at Regor 2 in sixty minutes.”

“Acknowledged. Please prepare the shuttle craft for Admiral Mercer’s departure shortly after our arrival.”

“Right away Captain.”


End file.
